Reader Submitted
To the editor:
As the broker/owner of RE/MAX Preferred Professionals, in Hillsborough and Bridgewater, I am proud to support Gloria McCauley as Republican Deputy Mayor. She has demonstrated her work ethics in the Real Estate Community as well as in the political environment.
As a resident of Hillsborough for many years, I can confidently say that Republican Deputy Mayor Gloria McCauley continues to elevate our quality of life to new heights within our neighborhoods – particularly in terms of public safety and law enforcement. She is a formidable public servant with a proven track record. As a parent and member of this community, it is reassuring to know an elected official like Gloria represents our township.
To recap, since Gloria was last re-elected in 2014: Money Magazine named Hillsborough the 16th ‘Best Place to Live in America’ in 2015. Also in 2015, the home-security industry experts at SafeWise named four Somerset County municipalities to its report on ‘The 50 Safest Cities in New Jersey’ – with Hillsborough ranked at 11th place.
Niche.com additionally found that Hillsborough was one of ten Somerset County suburbs that were among the top 100 in New Jersey to raise a family, based on: crime rates, age demographics, school ratings, and access to affordable housing, childcare, libraries, and grocery stores. In 2016, Hillsborough was among three Somerset County municipalities that made the Top 50 in theNJFamily.com listing of New Jersey’s Best Towns for Families. Finally, NJ Monthly ranked Hillsborough 46 out of the 513 best places to live in the Garden State just this year in 2017.
Gloria’s stellar leadership in Hillsborough appears to also be helping Somerset County gain national prominence as well, as neighboring towns may be enjoying a bit of a spill-over effect from Hillsborough’s success under Gloria’s guidance. In 2014, the prominent online real estate brokerage firm, Movoto.com, published a study rating our county America’s fifth best to live in. The methodology used to arrive at this conclusion factored in our county’s: unemployment rate, median household income, median rent, median home price, high school graduation rate and percent of families below the poverty line.
Indeed, the study showed that our county had the fourth lowest poverty level and the fourth highest median household income. In April 2015, the Advocates for the Children of New Jersey released its annual Kids Count Report, which found that Somerset County is one of the best places in the state for children. For the second year in a row, Somerset County was ranked third in the Report, which measures the state’s 21 counties in 13 categories, including poverty, health, safety and education. The report found that several key factors contributed to Somerset County’s ranking, including a drop in child poverty and increases in both median family income and the percent of low-income children receiving breakfast at school. Finally, the State chapter of the American Planning Association named nearby Downtown Somerville one of the Great Places in New Jersey.
Clearly, the Hillsborough Republicans’ policies under Gloria’s leadership are working and benefiting residents all over the economic spectrum not only in Hillsborough, but also within surrounding Somerset County towns. I know my family and neighbors agree. So let’s keep Hillsborough and Somerset County moving in the right direction on November 7 by casting our votes to re-elect Republican Deputy Mayor Gloria McCauley.
Elizabeth Jo (Betty Jo) Brechka
Hillsborough
